Vehicle signal



June 27,1 i933. F, M WALZ ET AL VEHICLE S IGNAL Filed Feb. 18, l93l 2 Sheets-Sheet l June 27, 1933. F M, WALZ ET A| l ,915,505

VEHICLE sINAL Filed Feb. 18, 1951' 2 sheets-sheet 2 tal section through the automobile taken on Patented .lune 27', 1933 U at rca

FREDERGK IVI. WALZ ANB C-IRLES J. WTALZ, 0F BUFFALO, NEXV YORK VEHICLE SGNAL VApplication filed Februaryl, 1931. Serial No. 516,545.

Our invention relates to improvements in vehicle signals, and more particularly to' thereof. f

Another object of our invention is the provision of a signal ofthe lriiid mentioned, y

which has signaling element at the rear of the automobile and actuating mechanism extending forwardly therefrom to a. point within convenient reach of the operator of y the automobile.

v further object of our invention is the provision of a. signal having asignaling elenient movablethrough a comparatively wide krang-e, and which is combined with actuating mechanism associated with said movable signaling element but requiring comparatively little movement to cause actuation of vsaid signaling element. Y

Vtith the above and other objects in view to appear hereinafter, our invention consists infthenovel features of construction and in the arrangement and combination of parts to be hereinafter described and more particulai-ly pointed out in theusubjoined claims.

In the drawings: l f

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal section showing a portion of an automobile and the manner of applying our invention thereto.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary horizonline 2 2, Fig. 1.

Fig. 3' is a perspective view -of the signalingunit and a portion of the actuating wire for actuatingthe signaling element of said unit. l

Fig. L1 is a cross section taken on line 4 4,

Fig. 6. Y

' Fig. `5, isa cross section taken on line 5 5, Fig. 6. y i

Fig. 6 isa vertical section taken on line 6 6, Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a vertical section taken on line 7 7, Fig. 6.

F ig. 8 is an enlarged vertical section taken on line 8 8, Fig. 6. Y

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of the manipulating lever and the current contact-bracket associated therewith. y

Figsl() and 11 are perspective views showing slightly modified actuating means for actuating he signaling element of the signaling unit.

Referring' to the drawings in detail, the numeral 12 designates the body of an automobile of the closed type, such bodies having l one or more entrance and exit doors 13 and usually a rear window 14;, such as will enable the operator of the automobile to obtain aview of the road in rear by means of the usual reflector mirror placed above the windshield'. i i

Nithin the automobile body, forward of and in close proximity to the rear window 14, our improved signal or signaling unit 15 is arranged. This unit comprises a casing 16 formed in any practicable manner and having parts of the signaling mechanism ars ranged therein, part extending outwardly therefrom, and part applied to the exterior thereof, preferably the rear of the casing.

7e preferably form the casing'16 by providing a Hat back plate 17 and a chambered cover 18. The flat back plate maybe con# sidered thejsupport and it has a depending ear 19 at its lower endv and laterally-extending ears 20`at its extreme upper end. The chambered cover 18 has a front wall 21, side walls 22, a bottom wall 23, and a top wall 24,

the latter being cut away along its rear marginal portion to provide an opening 25.` This cover has an ear 26 extending downwardly from its bottom wall and adapted to lie in contact with the depending ear 19 of the back plate or support, and a securing screw 27 is passed through these ears to fasten the cover to the back plate or support at their lower ends. Said cover also has extending from the rear edge of the side walls, laterally-extending ears 28 which lie aga-inst the laterally-extending ears 2O of the back plate or support, and through these last-inentioned overlying ears, registering screw holes 29 are formed, through which screws or other position into which it may be moved. y Y vThe actuating lever 30 extendsupwardly through the opening inthe casing,y and similar securing meansare passed and entered into the yrear wall of the automobile body directly above the rear window 14. The major portion of the casingfso formed therefore is positioned directly in front of the rear window 14 and `is visible through said window from the rear of the automobile. YFastened to the back plateor support'17 an actuating lever preferably' vertically disposed; it being pivotally mounted on a screw or other pivot element 31 passed through said back plate or support and spaced from the latter by a washer orV other spacing clement 32 so as to avoid rubbing contact with said back plate; thus'assuring free action'for said lever. y Y

` Surrounding said pivot element is a spring 33; bearing at one end against the front face of said-actuating leverand` atits other Vend againsta washer 34 against which a nut 35 threaded onto said pivot element bears.n By adjusting this nut on said pivot element the tension ofthe spring 33 may beyaried; its purpose being tovapply pressure to the actuating ;lever so as to hold the saine in any its lower end is bent forwardly and thence downwardly to form an offset'terminal 36 which is widened,a as shown in Fig. 6, and

provided with;` afj substantially;V-shaped not-0h37 opening downwardly; thepside Walls A of this notch preferably curved lengthwise to form cam-edgesior faces. The lower end or terminal ofv the actuating levermayy therefore be said to be formed toserve as an vactuator cam. y; Y n a Arranged for rotatableoscillationV in ythe backplateor support 17 is a' short shaft or spindle 38 which; "dale to its movement; may

be termed a rock shaft orspindle. Since it is4 our intention to construct the casing of sheet Vmetal, we deenrit advisable to provide aV longer bearing for ysaid rock shaft orspindle than would be formed by the sheet metal; and with this endin View a'comparatively thick bearing block 39; preferablyV metal, is secured tothe frontfacev of the back plate or support 17; it beingrivetedor otherwise fastened to said back plate or support; The

rock shaft or spindle BSeXtends rearwardlyI through the back plate' and also forwardly intothe casing beyond the. front" face of tliebearing block 39; the rear end thereof be ing reduced in diameter, as at 40, and screwthreaded to provide a shoulder 41.

yMounted on the rear projecting end of said rock-shaft orfspindle'isasignaling arm y or element 42, preferably in the form of an arrow having a normally depending position with'the point of the arrow directed downwardly, and; between this signaling element and the rear face of the back plate or A* support 17'is a washer'jor other spacing element 43 to hold the signaling element out of contactwith said back plate and prevent rubbing action during the actuation of said signaling element. f

The rear face of this signaling element is flush with the shoulder 41 on said rock shaft yor spindle,and a nut 44 is applied to the threaded reduced end of said shaft or spindle and bears against said shoulder and against the rear face of the signaling eleand a retainer to retain the rock shaft orr spindle in proper position within its bearing. The'forwardly-projecting portion of said pin extends through the V-shaped notch in4 the cam end ofthe actuating lever 80 and is adapted to be engaged by the` side walls of said-notch; which, as stated, serve as lcam edges or faces, and may therefore be termed a double-action cam. i

'As-*clearly shown in Fig. 7, the cam end or terminal of the actuating lever 3() -is disposed in a plane forward of the front end ofthe rock shaft or spindle 38, and therefore when moving said actuating lever7 one of the side walls or earn faces of thenotch inthe latter comesv in contact with the forwardly-projecting or cam portion of the pin 46, andunder pressurel applied by said lever 'said pinis caused to swing in a circular course rear member 49 connected together' by a curved portion 50. Passing through this guide or retainer member is a combined actuating and current-conducting wire 51 capable of ,moving ,freely through the tube. This wire is rigid enough to move within the tube under .pulling or pushing force, yet is flexible enough to conformto the curved portion of said tube and move freely through said portion This wire extends from the rear and front ends of said tube and its rear terminal iswconnected to the upper end of the actuating lever 30'7 as at 52. Thefront terminal of this actuating wire is connected to the upper end of a manipulating lever y55' pivotally secured between its ends, as at 54, preferably to the upright between the front and reardoors at one side ol the car.

lt, however, is to .be understoodthat this manipulating lever may be elsewhere located within convenient reach of the operator of the automobile. @thisV manipulating lever adapted to co-act with a switch bracket 55 secured to the side of the car and having a depressed portion or recession 56- between its ends forming opposite contact portions 57,

58 between which said depressed portion or recession is arranged. The manipulating lever is normally disposed in line with said depressed portion or recession and is out of contact with the switchY bracket. This bracket has connected thereto a current-conducting wire 59. l

The signaling element or arrow l2 may have an opening 60 formed in its head, or otherwise` in which van incandescent electric lamp 6l is arranged said lamp` being threaded into a sociiet 62 formed in said signalingV A to be ina depen( ingcr downwardly point ing position when driving along a straight course', and it is desired to drivethe antonio.-

bile to the left, itis simply necessary tov move the low'errorhandle end oi the Anianipulating lever 58 in a rearward di-- rection rlhis mov-es the upper portion oj said lever orwardy and pulls the cornbined actuating and current-conducting wire forwardly within the guide or retainer tube 4:7. This results vin movement of the actuating lever 30 'from the position shown in full' lines in Fig. 6to that shown in dotted lines; thereby causing the right hand pou tion of the cam terminal, as shown in said. ligure, to engage the cam pin lo and ino-ve said pin through an arc of a circle from the position shown in full lines to that shown in dotted lines, the cam edge or wall engaging sa id pin bein retained in contact therewith. rlhisthereiore causes the roch shaft or spindle 38 to move through a quarter of a complete revolution, with the result that the si naling element or arrow is swung from the position shown in full lines in said ligure to that shown in dotted lines. Others in rear of the automobile are thereby informed that a left-hand turn is to be made. During such manipulation, the upper end of the manipulating lever 53 is brought into engagement with theVcontact portion 58 of 4the switch bracket 55 and, assuming the circuit switch, referred Vto and not shown, is closed, the cur` rent will be conducted 'from the switch bracket 55 through the manipulating lever 53, the actuating wire 51, the actuating lever 30, the cam pin e6., rock shaft 338 and signaling element 42 to the electric lamp 6l; thecurH rent being grounded from said lamp through wire 63. `lirom the battery 6l the current is also grounded and current is also conveyed therefrom to the switch bracket 55; thus compleit-ingl the electric circuit and illuminating` the electric lamp 6l.

In the event that a riO'ht-hand turn is to be made, the manipulating lever 53 is swung in the opposite direction to bring the upper end thereof into engage-nient with the contact portion 57 of the switch bracket 55, thus establishing a circuit in the manner described. ln order, however, to manipulate the signaling element-so as to indicate such right hand turn, such manipulation of the lever 53 causes movementof its upper end in a rearward direction andexerts -iorce against the actuating and current-conducting wire 5l in a rearward direction. rthe wire 5l is thus moved under pushing action and swings the actuating lever 30 of the signaling unit in an opposite direction, swingi Ag the signaling element orarrow in a direction oppositethat shown in dotted lines in Fig. 6.

In the Apreferred construction we have show a continuous guide or retainer tube, in which the lon gitiL dinal section 48 is connected with the transverse section i9 by a curved vportion 50. y This arrangement is usable only in automobiles in which the rear vertical corners or angles of the car body are curved on a comparatively large radius, since a tube l' having a curve on a small radius or a sharp bend, will not permit free movement of the actuating wire therethrough. Therefore, where automobile bodies are `provided with sharp rear vertical corners, we forni the guide or retainer tube in two separated sections 4721, 48, adjacent ends of which are spaced apart, as at 65, and` into the corner of the autoincbile between the adjacent ends of' the two sections of guide or retainer tubes, a pulley G6 is arranged, the actuating wire 51 being exposedbetween adjacent ends of said tubes and passed around said pulley, as clearly shown in Fig. l0. Y

.A further modification of our invention is shown in Fig. ll wherein a rockshaft 6'? is suitably journaled along a side wall ol' the automobile above the door openings, suit-V able journal brachets (not shown) being fastened to the side wall. At ythe front enil of this rock shaft manipulating lever 68 is secured which is adapted to co-operate with a modified form of switch bracket 69. T ha movement of this lever is toward and away from the side wall, in contradistinction to a movement' parallel'therewith, as provided in our preferred construction, and consequently the bracket is disposed at a right angle to said side wall. Normally this lever is out of contactwith the bracket and isadapted, upon movement, to engage one or the other of the two contact portions thereof, in Ya manner hereinbefore explained. At the rear end of this rock shaft 67', a lever 70 is ar ranged to which one end ofan actua-ting wire 7l is secured, the other end of said wire being Afastened t-o the upper end ofthe actuating leve1130 forming part of our signaling unit. Upon rocking said shaft 67, the wireV 71 is pulled or pushcdfand causes the desired manipulation of the signaling element or arrow 42. In order to prevent buckling of this wire when actuatedrunder pushing strain, a guide or retainer tube 72 is secured in: any suitable manner to the rear wall of theautcmobile body.` These 'several parts may, or may not, be used as current-conducting elements.

While we have referred to the notch in the actuating lever as anupwardly-tapering or inwardly-tapering notch, it may also be referredito'as a downwardly-flaring notch and, in preferred form,`vthe actuatinglever 30 is vertically disposed while the rock shaft or spindle 38 is horizontallyT disposed, or at right angles tol saidactuating lever; and it may be stated that the signaling element or arrow may be firmly pressed onto vthe rock shaft, or otherwise secured thereto so Vas to cause it to move therewith and, ina generic sense, the right angledor forwardly-extending portion of the cam pin 46 `may be termed a projection of, or a projection on `thc rock shaft 38 disposed parallel with the axis of the latter.'

- i g Having thus described our invention, whatl we claim is Y 1. A signal,.comprising a support, an ac! tuating lever pivotally secured to said sup-` port and having aV notch in one. end,- a rock' shaft disposed at right angles 'to said lever and having a projection thereon parallel with itsaxis and4 arranged off center thereof, said projection, extending beyond the end of said shaft and being entered in said notchand engaged by the walls of said notch tov rockV Said shaft in one or theiother direction while a allowing the actuating lever to move in front y of said shaft, and asignaling element secured `to said shaft. l y y 2. An automobile signal, comprising a support, an actuating rlever pivotally mounted on said supportand normally vertically disposed, saidfactluating lever having a cam portionfthereon, a yrock shaft mounted in said supportand disposed at a right angle to said lever, alprojection, arranged olf center on said .rock shaft and extending beyond the end` thereof and 'engaged by said cam portion for rocking said shaft, said projection allowing said actuating levery to move acrossthe end of said shaft, and a signaling element secured to said shaft.

3. A signal, comprising a back plate adapted to be secured to an automobile or other object, a cover applied to said back plate and forming a chamber, said vcover having an opening in one of its walls, an actuating lever pivotally secured between its ends to said back plate and being spaced from the latter,

said lever having one end projecting through :T

the opening in said cover and its other end widened and offset and provided with an inwardly-tapering notch having convex walls, said widened end being disposed within said chamber, a rockvshaft journaled in said back plate and extending into said chamber and also through said back plate, a pin passed through said shaft and having a portion bent at right angles parallel with said shaft, said right-angled portion extending into the notch of said actuating lever forward of said shaft, means between said pin andy said back plate to prevent outward movement of said shaft, a spacing element on said shaft lying against the outer sideof said back plate, a `signaling element on said shaft bearing against said spacing element, and a 'nut applied to said shaft and-bearing against tically-disposed actuating lever pivotally secured between its ends to said back plate and projecting through. said' opening, one end of Said actuating leverbeing provided with a Vnotch having convex side walls, a shaftjournaled in said back plate and having an offcenterr projection parallel with its axis extending forwardly beyond the front end thereof to permit said actuating lever to move across the end of said shaft, said projection being entered in said notch, and a signaling arrow secured to said shaft outside ofisaid chamber.

In testimony whereof, we aiiix our signatures. Y

FREDERICK M. WALZ. Y CHARLES J. WALZ. 

